


Exalted

by Skullszeyes



Category: Death Stranding (Video Games)
Genre: Action, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Attraction, Beached Things (Death Stranding), Blackmail, Blood, Bonding, DOOMS (Death Stranding), Developing Relationship, Dubious Morality, Enemies, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, F/M, Gun Violence, Higgs Monaghan Being Higgs Monaghan, Homo Demens (Death Stranding), Hostile, I'm Bad At Tagging, Light Sadism, Loss of Parent(s), My First Work in This Fandom, Not Beta Read, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, POV Alternating, POV Original Character, POV Original Female Character, Protective Siblings, Sarcasm, Slow Burn, Smuggling, Swearing, Telekinesis, Threats, Timefall (Death Stranding)
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-05
Updated: 2020-04-10
Packaged: 2021-03-01 05:41:04
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,544
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23489998
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Skullszeyes/pseuds/Skullszeyes
Summary: Frey didn't want anything to do with others who had DOOMS, she only wanted to protect her siblings from the world they lived in, but a terrorist had found her, gotten a hold of a trinket that was precious to her, and now she's forced to seek him out and get back what was taken from her. Of course, Higgs isn't about to let someone with a similar level of DOOMS go any time soon, not when he held what she cared for against her.
Relationships: Higgs Monaghan/Original Female Character(s)
Comments: 3
Kudos: 14





	1. Chapter 1

The wind pushed against Frey’s brown strands as she stood upon the hill. The valley was empty of anyone who would see her own people once they crossed. And she made sure to catch sight of any BT’s. There weren’t any, but she had to make sure.

Lately, there have been terrorist attacks, and they’ve gotten too close for comfort. She’d rather not have her people be subjected to it, including her younger brother and sister. They mattered to her, even if they didn’t understand what was happening in the world, why they had to stay inside and avoid others. And why their older sister had powers and she was one of the only people amongst their group to leave their bunker.

For the cold weather, she only wore a grey coat that was left unzipped, a thinner plain black and green shirt beneath, including a black shirt. She received new shoes and was currently breaking them in, and was regretting the dark pink and black pants for this trek along their intended path.

She was not a porter by any means, even if she once asked about it, and her mind had muddled upon the job. She didn’t want it, she couldn’t let others know about her own abilities, even if they could become beneficiary. She only wanted to protect her younger siblings.

Frey strolled down the hill and while the wind picked up, she caught someone up ahead. She hadn’t noticed them from where she had been standing, and slowed when she realized that she would’ve seen them coming. She touched the pistol on the inside of her coat, and the person had stopped. In an instant, Frey stepped back the second their entire form vanished in the distance, then appeared before her.

“Well, what are you doing out here?” the man asked in his sly toned voice. A hood covered his head with a golden skull mask hiding his face.

“Who are you?” she asked, her hand still on the gun. She had the strong urge to run, to escape, a feeling of wrongness coming off of this person as her mind spun with what he had.

He had DOOMS.

* * *

_“Why do you have those powers?” Ciana asked her. A curious girl who sat beside her while she tried to read her siblings a book to get them to fall asleep._

_“I don’t know.” She didn’t, not entirely._

_Her brother, Lucian, was more curious, more adamant.“Why don’t you sleep?”_

_“I sleep,” she told him, flipping the page._

_He shook his head. “Not all the time. Sometimes you scream when you wake up, or you don’t sleep at all...why do you have so many nightmares?”_

_She couldn’t tell them the truth, even when their parents died, and they had to stay with people whom she considered family after a few years. She would keep them safe, even if one day she’ll have to leave them._

* * *

“I’m pretty sure,” he said, circling her while she kept her eyes on him, keeping the knowledge of her weapon out of his sight, “I asked first.”

“Enjoying the valley,” she answered, then taking a step away from him. She wanted to keep her distance. “My turn, who are you?”

“Higgs,” he said, seeming pleased. “Not anyone wanders around by their lonesome, and not someone like you who is not a porter.”

Maybe she should’ve became one. “And you?”

“I’m not afraid like them.” He waved his hand, a gesture toward the people who hide within their bunkers and cities. “And I’m guessing, you're not either.”

Frey narrowed her eyes, a second to realize what he meant before she _jumped,_ further down the hill and into the valley as her feet hit the hard grass as the wind pushed against her, then she heard him get close and she twisted around, her fingers wrapped around the gun handle, then she pressed the trigger, but he was so close that he had grabbed her wrist and pointed the gun to the sky as it went off.

She clenched her teeth, _jumping_ again, barely stumbling and realizing too late that the gun was gone from her hand.

Higgs chuckled. “Well, well, well, aren’t you a riot.” He examined the gun, clicking his tongue as he turned his attention toward her. “Not everyone gains a military gun like this, with a single mag too. You must have another, unless you’re extremely careful, but then again—”

Frey reached her hand out, and to Higgs’ surprise, the gun was yanked out of his hand, but before it could reach her, he had the same ability and shoved the gun away from her and into the hill to her far left, landing somewhere in the dirt.

She was desperate, her mind reeling from what she was learning of this random person who had found her, and before she could jump, her entire being became stiff and difficult to fight against. No. Damn it, she was distracted for a second, and it was enough for him to entrap her.

“You’re the type who responds well to violence,” Higgs said, holding her in his grasp as she tried hard to move, teeth clenched before she let out a frustrated noise.

“Let me go!”

Higgs tsked, amused by her annoyance. “Now I have a question for _you_ , what is your name?”

“Fuck you!”

“That’s not a name.” He snickered.

He walked closer until he was in front of her, and he reached out and brushed away her dark hair to touch her face. He was almost gentle in the movement, which continued to irritate her that she allowed him to get this close.

“Don’t,” she glared up at him, “fucking touch me.”

Higgs chuckled, dropping his hand. “I only want to know your name. I haven’t met someone like yourself, maybe another, but you’re something else. Not a porter, and not someone like me, but hidden in the hills, so normal at your age, and so hostile.”

She had little care for what he was trying to insinuate. “I don’t care, let me go.” This had never happened to her before, yet again, she never met someone with this level of DOOMS before. It was the reason why she wanted to keep her own a secret.

He took a knife from his pocket, it was gold with a black handle. “And I thought we could be friends, I could’ve offered you a job, or maybe even security along the valley for your people.”

Frey went still at his smooth words, and he seemed to notice the way she had stopped struggling. He had struck a nerve, and revealed what she didn’t want him to know about. She was also getting the feeling he had already known. Is that why he’s out in the valley on his own?

Ciana and Lucian flashed in her head, and her heart raced at the implication of what this man could do. He already got her in his grasp, and he could easily kill her if he wanted too. Even if she was valuable or not.

“Don’t you know,” he said, then he was lifting her into the air, “time waits for no one.”

Her gaze went toward the horizon to her left, to the upside down rainbow, to the BT’s that would appear in the distance sooner or later. She had made sure that her recon wouldn’t take long until she’d have to head back. It was the reason why she didn’t wear a hat, or a hood, even if she had one attached to her coat. She could also jump and return home without any problem.

At least until she met this asshole who was threatening her simply for her name.

Frey started to struggle again. “Let me go, you fucker!”

“That isn’t nice, you know.”

“And threatening people is? Fucking hypocrite!”

Higgs laughed, obviously amused. “You have such a temper. Tell me your name and I’ll let you go.”

And then what? What else will there be beyond what is going on?

She glanced toward her gun, then the thought of her siblings flashed in her head, and what would happen after Timefall.

“F-Frey,” she said, her breath escaping as if she were suffocating, as if he had his hand around her throat and she could hardly breathe while her chest tightened. Except he wasn’t doing that, it was her own fear breaking her down, making her desperate, angry, weak.

“Nice to meet you, Frey.” He grinned, then he let her go, disappearing in a spark of light.

Frey gasped as she fell through the air, then jumped several feet away from where he had stood, and reached out for her gun. She heard him get close again, her own grasp failing as she jumped away, moving quick as he laughed, both of them moving, evading one another as his knife barely touched her besides cutting her sleeve, then a sharp pain made her stop and Frey had almost ran into him, and he was no longer wearing the mask.

She was almost startled besides not wanting to touch him, but she hadn’t thought he’d look like that beneath the mask. An almost vulnerable and smug demeanor on his slim face, in his blue eyes, a black tear had slipped down his cheek, like one slipping down hers. 

He smiled, amused and content as they both panted from how much they used their abilities at once.

Her face was flushed, both from rage and exertion, and an impossible feeling that irked her. “If you get close to them…” The threat was there as she jumped back several feet, and everything had fallen flat when she noticed something he was holding that swung back and forth. He was satisfied by her reaction before disappearing from the valley.

He stole a precious item that had been around her neck. A silver necklace that was given to her by her mother before she died, untouched by Timefall, it was a heart locket and within it had Ciana and Lucian’s faces on either side.

Frey stared where he had stood, shock reverberating through her before she pulled her gun from the ground, and jumped from the valley as Timefall began to cover the land.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Higgs is waiting for her, and Frey will hunt him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, I was thinking about this fic, and I wanted to write another chapter. I'm not sure how long this fic will be, and I'm not as great at updating all that much. Mostly because I suffer with a severe mental disorder, and there are times when I don't update certain fics for several weeks to months. _(Just a warning whenever I end up in one of my months long episodes.)_
> 
> I hope you enjoy this fic.
> 
> Comments and/or Kudo's are appreciated.

The world was silent, an empty husk, besides the wind that caressed the side of his face. He once imagined the world to be more than it was, but those dreams were nightmares, and he’d wake up with doubt. He had thought maybe if he looked, if he searched out those who were close to what he is, he could be more aware beyond the others who are lesser.

At least that’s what he hoped as he stared, mesmerized, at the silver heart locket he had torn from Frey’s neck. She was a spitfire, rage in her brown eyes, as she snarled her disgust at him. He was amused by her anger, wanting to wrap his hands around it until all of it became pulp on the grass at her feet.

She was quick, able to realize what he was intending, then _jumping_ to get away, but to also place distance between where they were and her own people. He already knew, which pushed her to run even if she was at a disadvantage by the end of their quarrel.

He had suspected who she was when he looked through old archives of DOOMS. People who were examined as children, then later on as young adults. Some, like himself, were left without a diagnosis until they were older. From the way she can use her abilities were from years of practice. Completely at ease and able to hold her ground if she wasn’t against someone like him.

Higgs smirked when he opened the locket and found two small faces on either side. A young girl and boy, they shared the same colored hair, eyes, and light brown skin.

After looking for certain people like him with a high level of DOOMS, which wasn’t much, he had also looked into her family history, and anyone who was connected to her. She had moved around many times before reaching the age of twenty-four. Most of her records were gone after her parents had died when she was thirteen, and her younger siblings were babies.

Higgs closed the clasp and stuffed the necklace into his pocket. Sooner or later, she’ll make her way over to him, from her fierce personality and the way she didn’t hesitate to shoot him, she would hunt him without a second thought once she gains her bearings.

“What a lovely day,” Higgs said to no one. He stood under a broken concrete building while Timefall covered the ground. He hadn’t been excited in a long time. He had met someone before with the ability to _jump_ , but not like Frey with the use of telekinesis. Her own ability with that was also impressive.

He was fascinated in their next encounter. What would she do, what would she say, and what will happen? The shocked expression he left her with was still sitting inside his mind. Her own words had dropped away, the fire numbed out, and it was what made his own excitement rise to the surface, as if it were tangible.

He had made her angry, played with her emotions, and brought her to a vulnerable state while at the same time extinguishing the anger inside of her. He had done it in a matter of minutes.

That’s what made this exciting. The anger in their eyes, the openness of their emotions displayed for him. Why wouldn’t he take advantage when he had the chance?

To speed up a bit of his own time, he had sent out a message directly to her. At least to the ones who were close to her. He hoped she got it in time while Timefall fell away into the horizon as BT’s littered the surrounding area.

* * *

“Where are you going?” Ciana asked Frey when she had returned to the bunker. It was a couple miles out from where she had been attacked, and she made it back before Timefall could catch up. She had caught sight of BT’s closing in, and told her people to return to the bunker. Now, she had showered, changed her clothes, rubbed at her skin a bit before glaring at her reflection in the mirror.

Ciana had entered the small room she shared with her and Lucian, and started asking questions. Her brown hair was braided and fell along the middle of her back. She was eleven years old, and was growing quick, alongside Lucian, who was her fraternal twin brother. He hardly liked being in the same room with them and spent his time talking to the older men and women around the table, or even outside when they worked.

“I lost something back out in the valley,” Frey told Ciana, fingers going still on the laces of her dark green boots. She had grabbed a green jacket from her closet since the other was ripped in the shoulder, and felt somewhat safe in it while doing up her laces. “I have to go get it.”

“Can I come?” Ciana asked, watching her with intrigue.

Frey straightened, then shook her head which gained her a glare. “I can’t take you.”

“Why not?” Ciana asked, crossing her arms. “Timefall’s over...I’m sure I can—”

“No,” Frey said, turning away from her. The word came out almost harsh, yet adamant, but there was also a fear that quivered in her throat. She didn’t want Ciana or Lucian near Higgs. He had taken her necklace with their faces on it, and from the way he is, completely unpredictable with little reason to why he bothered to hunt her, she didn’t want him near her sister and brother.

Ciana groaned. “Come on, I hate staying in here—”

“Then go out with the others, I’m sure they won’t mind the company.”

“They won’t take us,” Ciana said, frustration lacing through her words. “We’re too young, not _adult-like_. It’s dangerous out there, even if we live near a city.” Ciana didn’t bother hiding her sarcasm as she scowled toward the closed door of their room.

“It _is_ dangerous,” Frey said, checking her gun she had taken from the ground before leaving the valley. She had cleaned it and replaced the magazine, and grabbed an extra one. She gained odd looks from the others, even if she did give a flimsy excuse. She didn’t want them to know that she was attacked, not yet, not until she knows who Higgs is.

Currently, it was personal, and she didn’t want to involve the others unless she needed help. And if it comes to it, she’ll have to figure a way to gain more information about Higgs if he becomes a much larger issue. Something was telling her that he is, and he wasn’t out in the valley for a simple stroll.

“Why do you have that?” Ciana asked, tilting her head to the side to see the switchblade in Frey’s hand. She had never used it for anything but cutting open plastic or tape. The purpose now has changed into something else, and Frey closed it and tucked it into her pant pocket.

“In case.”

“In case for what?” Ciana asked, staring at her suspiciously.

_In case the gun is taken from me, in case it’s my last resort against someone who is specifically hunting me for what I can do. In case I can get the upper hand the next time he tries to do something and I’ll have a weapon that isn’t my own ability._

“Sometimes I can’t rely on myself,” she told Ciana. 

“That doesn’t make sense.”

“It doesn’t have too.” Frey hugged Ciana tightly against her chest, and she felt her sister hug her back. They stayed this way for a second longer before Frey let go, and she gave her a reassuring smile. “I’ll be right back.”

“What did you lose?” Ciana asked while Frey opened the bedroom door and Lucian stood on the other side, holding a plastic plate in his hand and glancing between the two, but his gaze fell on Frey as realization crawled its way into his eyes.

“You’re leaving _again_?” he asked, the sharp tone in his voice told her enough about how teenagers usually react, but mostly when Lucian and Ciana are cooped up in a confined space for far too long.

“I have too,” she told Lucian, side stepping past him.

“Why?” Lucian called as Frey walked down the hall, then she heard him ask Ciana, but she didn’t know either.

Frey didn’t want to tell them she had lost their mother’s necklace. That the photo of her sister and brother were one of the last ones she gained from their parents before they died. It was precious to her, and maybe only to her that this task made it seem nonsense to others.

“Frey!” Walton called from the other side of the room. He was a tall man with almost greying hair. He had a wife who watched the cameras and kept up with the weather reports that allowed the adults to leave the bunker. Walton had been one of the people who had warmed up to her and her younger siblings, and maybe it was pity for a fifteen year old with three year old twins that allowed them to stay.

What really gave them the incentive to stay a lot longer than intended was when they had found out about her DOOMS.

“What is it?” she asked, a few steps away from the door.

“We have a run later,” Walton said, lowering his voice from anyone else, including her siblings who stood in the hallway, Lucian angrily eating his food while Ciana had her arms crossed again. “If you’ll be available, I did hear about what happened.”

Frey looked up sharply. “What are you talking about?”

Walton gave her a small smile. “Heard about you taking another mag, and apparently your gun was covered in dirt. We kept most of this from Lucian, but once you get back from...wherever you’re going, I’d like a report on what happened.”

Frey’s heart raced for a second at what Walton had said, but relaxed when she realized they were only talking about her gun. “Yeah, of course, I’ll be back in an hour, save me some food.”

He grasped her shoulder, stopping her again, then leaning closer. “We also got an unknown message from someone…”

She furrowed her brows at this, “What are you talking about?”

Walton glanced over at the men and women sitting at the table. Apparently most of them had already heard about what happened, or at least wanted to know what was going on. “Nothing cryptic, Frey, just straightforward. Ruin Outpost.”

“That’s all?”

Walton nodded, sliding his hand off her shoulder. “That’s all. No secrets, Frey. Whatever this is, you spill it once you get back.”

Frey quirked a smile, “Yeah, no problem, see you later.” She pushed open the steel door and walked down the hall to another door. It opened slowly as she stepped outside of the bunker and breathed in the crisp air before _jumping_ from the vicinity.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was wondering why I like Higgs so much. Not just because he's an interesting villain with an interesting face, words, and powers, but there had to be a better reason why I'm _attracted_ to him. And I figured it out after breaking my left ankle. And the reason for why I like him is because he has **power**. That might sound a bit...shallow, or whatever. But he didn't have power when he was younger, and as adult, he was given this power that it went to his head. And I get it, I really fucking get it. If only telekinesis, teleporting, etc,. were real, but I think humans would be more fucked up. 
> 
> Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and don't mind my ramblings.
> 
> Comments and/or Kudo's are appreciated.


End file.
